Mark, the modified mix Al recommends is a good place to start, but are you planning on covering the container and relying upon a strip of fertilizer on the surface to feed the plants? This is critical because if you will use the cover/fert strip you really need a fast wicking potting mix and this means peat and vermiculite. What I often tell people getting started with Earthboxes where a cover and fertilizer strip will be used is that the system was designed with peat based mixes and it works very well with them so give that a try for a year. It will give you a good frame of reference for tinkering in subsequent years. Assuming you do not wish to do this then: I would encourage you to make a mix and set it outside to see if it will keep the surface moist for a couple days before committing. This is if you will use the cover and fertilizer strip. If you won't use either then Al's mix (original or modified) will work fine. Keep in mind my experience is in Wisconsin, somebody in a hotter/drier/windier climate might need to modify a bit. Even with the cover on, the wind gets under it from the holes we must cut for the plants. This wind may not seem like much, but it can quickly dry the surface. You really do need to test though, that's the best approach. Just do it outside. I say this because I made the mistake of evaluating how well various materials wicked *inside* (I was going through an endless winter and wanted a gardening 'project'). How something wicks indoors is waaaay different than how it wicks outside due to temp, wind, humidity etc. Again though, you really only need to modify Al's mix with fast wickers like vermiculite or peat if you want to use the cover and fert strip. One last tip, if you find that the very surface goes and stays dry, but an inch down it's moist you can simply bury the fertilizer strip an inch under the surface. This gives more latitude in compromising between a coarse mix that drains well and one that can wick fast enough to keep that fert strip working. Happy growing.

Expect to add at least a gallon of water a day when the temps are cool and the air is still. When it's sunny and windy you could be adding more water and doing that a couple of times a day. It's important that your container should be lightly colored. If it's black or dark it will absorb heat from the sun, if it is white or pastel, it will reflect the heat. What happens is that the sun can superheat the soil and it can singe immature roots, they then cannot efficiently, if at all, uptake moisture from the soil. You can also place the container in part shade and have a very successful crop with only six or seven hours of sun everyday. T

Well, I'll chime in with a straight face, MOL..... my 'maters are all in pots, and need water at least twice a day, I mix up some MG in a bucket and pour some into each bucket I have next to each plant, I keep that water-bucket there so all I have to do is dip out some water and not drag the hose all over the yard.. so essentially I am giving each 'mater some liquid fertilizer each time I water...I won't even speculate at what strength but the water is blue, from the MG... most of my 'maters are getting pretty big, they are from last year's planting Tom brought me.... but they are still setting fruit so I keep them going even tho' they are pot-bound now.....I speculate that the only thing that keeps them going is the liquid fert., by now, because any other nutrient in the potting-mix has been long-gone..... works for me.... sally

How long is the Tomato Tone supposed to last? Tomatoes are hungry plants. I use a slow-release, as well as regular liquid fertilizer for my container tomato. Josh